Authentic Cacio e Pepe

Much like traditional Carbonara pasta, this recipe is an ode to simplicity. Three ingredients, no more ; that's all it takes to create something bigger and better than most pasta you'll eat in your lifetime. I first had this pasta in Rome, and I hadn't realized yet the sheer power of Pecorino. That's where most of the flavour comes from ; all it needs to shine even brighter is some decent black pepper, and properly cooked, quality pasta. The recipe is exceedingly simple, but demanding at the same time. Be patient ; take the time to grind your black pepper, to grate your Pecorino ; at the very end of the cooking process, do add it little by little, and cautiously eyeball the pasta water level, so that it's never too much, nor too little. There's no one size fits all here, since the amount of water will depend on the Pecorino your use, your pan temperature, the pasta type you use, and so on ; you need to learn this on your own by trial and error. Not to worry though ; there's no way to completely mess this dish up. Worst case scenario, you'll end up with an overly thick, slightly lumpy sauce. No biggie. I truly cannot recommend this dish enough. In terms of effort-to-pleasure ratio, it's even more glorious than carbonara pasta. All it takes is 20 minutes to eat pasta that will put most westernized Italian restaurants to shame.

Authentic Cacio e Pepe Recipe

The authentic Cacio e Pepe (litterally "cheese and pepper") consists in pasta -traditionally tonnarelli or spaghetti, sometimes pici- that you drench in a sauce only made of water and Pecorino romano. Some freshly grounded black pepper lift the dish up just right.

Ingredients - Advice & key points

I usually go to Eataly to get the produce I need. If you don't have one near your location, you can find fresh produce like guanciale and pecorino at your local Italian deli, maybe even your pasta. For pasta, if not available there, you should be able to order it online quite easily.

• Pasta :
  • While I believe tonnarelli is the best choice for this recipe, and was usually used in restaurants in Rome when I visited, spaghetti is also ideal.
  • What you must not compromise on is using Bronze Drawn pasta. Why so ? Because when processed this way, the pasta will present small irregularities that will enable the sauce to cling to it.
  • You could use fresh pasta if so inclined ; in this case, I'll 100% recommend making pici, which are a perfect fit for this recipe.

• Cheese(s) :
  • Very important : Use some aged cheese ! If below the 8 month range, the Pecorino might be overly moist and won't melt properly.
  • You can stick to Pecorino Romano only, which is the most traditional way. If your Pecorino type is strong, you might use a 70/30 blend with Parmigiano, which will tone down the strong Pecorino flavour. It depends on your Pecorino type ; if it is quite aged, in the 24-36 months range, you might benefit from adding a bit of Parmigiano.
  • Careful ; only add your cheese when your fire is turned off ! Else, your sauce will turn lumpy.

• Pepper :
  • It is important to use freshly ground black pepper.
  • I personnally use this blend from Roellinger, but you can really use any, except highly fragrant, exotic ones.
  • If you don't own a mortar and pestle, simply use the bottom of a small pot.

Recipe - What to pay attention to

• Pasta :
  • Don't oversalt ! While 10g of salt/liter is usually recommended, here, with the salt from the cheese, you can easily halve this amount.
  • We'll cook the pasta half of the packet cooking time in water, then in the pan with the peppery water. It is important that you taste several times starting 2 minutes before the theoretical end time, so that you get perfect al dente pasta.
• Black pepper :
  • You want to toast it once ground, but don't let it burn or it'll taste bitter. Once fragrant, it's already enough.
• Pecorino :
  • It is very important to thinly grate your Pecorino to that it melts properly. Look at my carbonara picture ; this is the thickest you can get. You can use a microplane or a lime zester, but if you have a kitchen robot with a really thin setting, it will also work just fine and save you the trouble.
  • Do not use pre-grated cheese ! Additives are added to these cheeses so that they don't clump together, which will prevent it from integrating properly in your sauce.
• Adding your sauce : Remove your pan from heat at least 20 seconds before adding your sauce, otherwise the eggs might overcook. Then incorporate your sauce progressively.
• Plating : I highly recommend heating your plates in the oven for 10 minutes at 80°C before plating. This will prevent the sauce from getting cold too quickly and become unappealingly "set".

Now you're fully ready to cook a magnificent pasta dish. Off to your kitchen ! If you're interested in more authentic italian recipes, you can also check my Ragu alla Bolognese recipe.